IN OTHER WORDS

Published: October 14, 2007

Common Sense Behind Bars

An Ulster County legislative committee has delivered a scathing, 200-page document on the jail-construction debacle, and it's not surprising that those criticized in the report are calling it a political witch hunt.

All the more reason why the county district attorney's office has to settle the matter. Whether criminal charges will be filed against anyone in connection with the outrageous cost overruns at the jail remains to be seen. But the public has to know what transpired.

They already know the outlandish results: The facility opened this year, two years behind schedule and way over budget. It was supposed to cost $72 million; the final tally will likely exceed $100 million. Moreover, the county has taken out an $8 million bond just to make payments on legal claims filed by builders who incurred expenses during work delays.

To date, no one has taken responsibility for the shoddy process or cost overruns.

While Ulster officials have repeatedly chalked up the outrageous price tag to problems with contractors, bad weather and bedrock, a state audit also took a different view. It said there wasn't enough oversight as the jail was being built. The audit found the county approved more than 1,000 change orders totaling $10.7 million from 2002 through 2005. The audit also cited inappropriate reimbursements to contractors for lodging, meals and air fare and said ''The county's failure to institute adequate controls over the spending for this project imposed unnecessary and inappropriate cost to the taxpayers.''

The legislative committee questioned the wisdom of building such a large, new facility in the first place, saying it could find no ''needs assessment'' to justify the expense. The new facility can house more than 400 inmates, about 170 more than the county needs at this point. Ulster can, at least, make some money by taking in inmates from other counties facing overcrowding, including Dutchess, in exchange for reimbursement.

Ulster County District Attorney Donald Williams has received permission from the state to empanel a special grand jury to investigate these matters and has actively monitored the legislative committee's work. Good. This legislative committee did its job; now it's the prosecutor's turn.

The Poughkeepsie Journal, Oct. 7

Abandoned and Dangerous

Last week, the Town Board began the process of taking bids to demolish a group of abandoned buildings located on a seven-acre site on Fairmount Road in Goldens Bridge. This is an important step for the safety of the neighborhood, and the board should carry through with demolition plans.

Abandoned buildings can pose an issue in any town. Many of us have stories from our childhoods of going up to a nearby abandoned building on a dare, to escape from parents or just to look around. Every so often, the police blotter will even include a note about a party held at an abandoned building, where teens thought they could drink free of parental interference.

But when abandoned buildings, through poor maintenance and neglect, start becoming hazardous, they graduate from nuisance to danger. The Fairmount Road site includes buildings that have lain neglected for too long, in one case damaged by fire. The fact that the buildings on Fairmount Road contain asbestos should prompt their owner, Brian Stein, to do the right thing and make sure his property is no longer a hazard. And if he is not willing to solve the problem, then it becomes the responsibility of the Town Board to solve it for him.

This issue has been before the town for years without action being taken.

Whatever the result of the bids, something must be done. This issue has been on the back burner for too long already.